Comprehension of Unit Parameters Among Rebreather Owners

Our aim is to evaluate use of existing carbon dioxide (CO2) canister tracking technology within the recreation and technical diving community. Current designs involve tracking the time a canister has been used with known data on canister time limitations. Another method involves the use of a thermistor that is integrated into the canister itself to measure the exothermic reaction. Some systems also integrate alarms that are tied to the measurements.

Rebreather owners utilized a web-based questionnaire for information on their current understanding of unit specifications and CO2 events when using a rebreather. All information collected was done in a way that removes the identity of the respondents for privacy protection.

Data analysis is complete and the survey results will be published at the Undersea and Hyperbaric Medical Society Annual Scientific Meeting in June. The preliminary results were presented by Kevin Gurr at Rebreather Forum 3.0 in May 2012 and represented in the final consensus statements.

This project is a collaboration between the Divers Alert Network, Duke Anesthesiology, the Navy Experimental Diving Unit, and Rubicon. Please contact us with any questions or comments on the project.